


Cruel Summer

by watercolorwoman



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: F/M, Mild Spoilers, Romance, Secret Relationship, Summer Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:07:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,500
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25131364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/watercolorwoman/pseuds/watercolorwoman
Summary: Summer is an opportunity for love to blossom, and everyone knows it never lasts. But what happens over the next two months will change the way they both see each other...and think about love.(Hiatus for now D:)
Relationships: Niijima Makoto/Sakamoto Ryuji
Comments: 15
Kudos: 86





	1. Quiet of the Night

“I was thinkin’... you wanna hang out tonight?” 

Ryuji’s voice brought Makoto out of her train of thought. The two were standing on the train platform, her mind slightly foggy from the early morning commute. She was reasonably still tired from the Phantom Thieves’ battle the night prior. They had finally taken Kaneshiro’s heart, and the pair had successfully pulled off their showtime attack for the first time. 

However, it was unusual for him to ask her out this way. They had a few interactions prior, but it was possible he was still riding high from a successful first attempt at their showtime attack during the battle. Still…

“Why do you ask?” 

“I uh, just wanna get to know ya a little better. It’s not a big deal, you can say no if you want...” He trails off, looking down at his feet. She could see two second years giggling from a distance. She wasn’t sure if they were laughing at something they were talking about, or if they could hear Ryuji’s sad attempt at asking her out. But it’s not really a date… right? What was he asking her exactly?

“Is this a date?” She asks, already regretting the question. His eyes look afraid, almost like he doesn’t want to say yes or no. Both answers have their own consequences, and he knew that. Did he want to go on a date with Makoto? Uh, yeah! He realized his feelings were more than just a small crush after they worked so hard to get the calling card flyers everywhere. He would’ve found it annoying to see someone working that hard, but she had a determination that he just couldn’t get out of his mind. 

But did she see him that way?

“It could be?” He smiles, trying to be smooth and calm. She laughs, seeing right through his fake confidence. Still, the girls from behind were annoying her. She saw them walk in another direction, heading closer to the train tracks as the sounds of the train approached them. Her answer would be drowned out by it. She waits until the train comes to a stand still, the hissing sound of the doors becoming the loudest noise. 

“Come to the student council office after school, okay?” Makoto winks at him, and goes ahead to step into the train. She couldn’t deny that he was cute, and when they worked together the other day, she had a good time. Whether or not this would blossom into anything… Well, that was yet to be seen.  
\--

Ryuji the entirety of his school day thinking of where he’d take her. He didn’t think he’d get this far, especially since she seemed like she was actually into the idea of dating her. There was the arcade, but he wasn’t sure if she’d be into it. There was also his favorite noodle shop, but that didn’t feel like a good spot for a first date. Where would she want to go? Maybe a bookstore? He liked reading manga, and she seemed like the type to read real books for fun. 

“Sakamoto, I’m waiting for a response.” He hears his teacher ask. Without looking at the board, he guesses an answer. 

“Uh, six I guess?” 

“This is English class, not math. Please pay more attention.” He rolls his eyes, looking out the window. Yeah… the bookstore. That could work. Thankfully, the mild embarrassment he had and small snickers were short lived, since English was his final class of the day. He jumps out of his seat and leaves the classroom. He wasn’t really friends with anyone in his actual class, in part to his reputation, but he also didn’t care about what they said anyway. The Phantom Thieves, those were his real friends. And now with Makoto added to the mix, his friend group is getting bigger. 

Well, ‘friend’ was a word he didn’t want to eventually use to describe her. 

Ryuji jogs up to the student council room, stopping right in front of a window. He checks his clothes; Out of uniform, but still clean and organized. He didn’t smell bad, nor was his hair a mess. He fixes the front slightly before turning the corner to walk down the hall. The door is slightly ajar, and he pushes the sliding door open. Makoto sits at the center table, intentently looking over some documents. She looked really busy.

“Hey, you sure you still wanna hang?” He questions, awkwardly standing at the door. 

“Hm?” She looks up, and smiles when she sees it’s him. “Hi Ryuji. Give me a few minutes, feel free to take a seat. Just close the door behind you.” She turns back to her paperwork. Ryuji slowly slides the door back and sits on the arm of a sofa near the door. He felt awkward being in here. There was no reason for him to ever be in the student council room, and the only thing he really knew about it was that Makoto found out about their secret here. All because he called Akira on the phone way too excited about their next target. 

It was all in the past now, but he still kicked himself for it. He knew he had to be careful, and honestly, they got so lucky that Makoto ended up being really chill after she found out. She was indispensable, and he was pretty sure she knew that. He hears a louder shuffling of papers, and she places a pile on a desk behind the main table. She bends down to grab her bag from the floor, and turns around to see him. 

“Alright, did you have anything planned for today?” Makoto questions. 

“I was thinkin’ Jinbocho? You ever been there before?” She shakes her head. “It’s a bookstore, in Chiyoda. We gotta pay to get there, but they got some really cool books. I go for the manga, but maybe we can find somethin’ ya like?” 

Makoto smiles, not expecting him to pick a spot like that. Ever since she became president, she was too busy to do anything other than her council work or study for school. With the addition of the Phantom Thieves, her schedule left her no time for reading. Summer was around the corner, and she definitely would appreciate something to take up the slower times of the season. 

“Sounds like a plan, let’s go.”  
\--  
Jinbocho felt like a palace held up by books. Ryuji had hyped up the store on their way there, but she didn’t expect it to really live up to her expectations. Any genre she could imagine was available. There weren’t too many customers here, which made sense since not many people go to look for books on a Friday night. In a way, this was a blessing because of how tight the spacing was. Makoto was never really claustrophobic, but the small rows between shelves and tables was barely enough for two people to fit through. 

“It’s a little tight, but it’s got anything you’re looking for.” Ryuji notes from behind her, eyeing the mangas on the top shelf.

“How about books in English? I’ve been wanting to practice by reading smaller novels.” 

Ryuji turns to face her. “Yeah! There in the back, but uh…” He considers guiding her there, but if he tried to go around her, he’d definitely have to touch something. Biting his lip, he decides to go for it. He holds his hands up high, a confused look appearing on her face. When he makes it around her without having to lay a hand on her, he sighs, feeling relieved. 

“Were you afraid of touching me?” She questions, her eyebrows furrowing. 

“I mean, yeah? You’d probably kick my ass if you thought I was tryin’ something. But books right, let’s go.” He walks off ahead, and Makoto follows him closely behind. She didn’t know what this feeling was. Was she hoping that he’d touch her, even by accident? Their bodies had barely brushed up against each other while he went around her. 

Ryuji leads them to a section, with ‘English’ written above it. It was the only sign not in Japanese, and the pickings weren’t as abundant as the other sections. It made sense since not everyone could read in English, but Makoto still seemed to have a good selection before her. She picks up a black book with a golden bird on the cover. Ryuji couldn’t really speak English, and reading it was just as bad. The only way he knew this was the section was that he knew how to read the word ‘English.’ Well, barely that, the owner had told him about the section in a previous visit. 

“Hunger Games, I forgot about this series.” 

“Isn’t that the one that’s like Battle Royale?” He questions. The bird on the cover did look a little familiar, maybe from promotional material when he was younger. He figured it was a lot bigger overseas, especially since they had something similar here already. 

“Somewhat. I saw the films last year with my sister. It was interesting, definitely not as gruesome as Battle Royale. It focuses on taking down a dystopian society, and the main character is in a love triangle. Hm, I wonder if I could read it.” Makoto opens the book, flipping to the first chapter. Ryuji looks over her shoulder, understanding a handful of words on the page. It seemed like she understood it, because she was already going to the next page. 

“You understood that page?” Ryuji asks, surprised. 

“I’m more surprised you don’t. This doesn’t seem too difficult, at least for someone who’s studying English, as you should be.” She closes the book, the sound of pages hitting each other echoes between them. 

“Uh, English ain’t ever been my best subject, even when I kinda cared about school. There’s too many words that sound the same, but got different meanings. Or worse, they got the same meanings but like, depending on how you use it, it might be somethin’ totally different.” 

Makoto laughs, “I’ll give you that. English can be finicky.” She looks at the book. It wasn’t brand new, as it had a few nicks in the corners. But the price was much cheaper than she would’ve paid if she got it brand new. “I’ll buy this, and read it over the summer. I wonder if the rest of the series is here… Would you help me look for the other two books if I showed you the cover?” 

Ryuji nods, and Makoto searches up the covers. She shows him similar covers, only in blue and red. He tries to memorize the titles, but they’re lost on him as soon as she puts her phone away. He looks through the smaller piles, trying to see if there was anything similar to the vibrant colors. After a moment, he spots the familiar blue. He goes through the pile, grabbing the book and setting it at the top of the pile. At nearly the same time, Makoto pulls out a red book. 

“Are these it?” He asks. Makoto grabs both books, looking at the covers intentently before nodding. 

“Yeah they look like it. Oh, was there anything you wanted to buy? All we’ve been doing is looking for books for me.” 

Ryuji waves her off. “Nah, it’s cool. I come here a couple times a month to buy new mangas. I came last week so I’m good for now. I just wanted to show you a place I liked a lot that maybe you’d like too.” 

He’s sheepish, and she finds it cute. She looks down at the three books, thinking about how considerate he was of her the entire time. From the moment he first asked out, he seemed to just be trying to figure out what would make her happy. While she appreciated the gesture, a date goes both ways. She hadn’t even considered what to do for him, but with the time she had to pay for the books, she could improvise something. 

“Let’s pay for these, I have an idea.” Makoto lies, not really having an idea while she says it. But while she waited on the short line to pay, she considered what he liked. She knew he was always the first to enjoy a good meal. There was one spot in Kichijoji she had been to before. They served amazing chunky katsu, and while it was a little far from the bookstore, they could probably make it right before closing. 

“So what’s your idea, prez? To be honest I didn’t really plan anything after the bookstore.” He’s honest, something he hoped she’d like. Truth be told, he would’ve been fine if it just ended at the bookstore. Not because he didn’t want to go out with her more, but because he at least got to spend time with her, and learn more about what she liked. Like today, he learned that she wanted to get better at English. She wanted to do it by reading morbid books that maybe he could get into if he understood English. 

“There’s a meat shop in Kichijoji-” 

“Say no more, I’m in.”  
\--

The sun was already setting by the time they reached Kichijoji. The street is bustling, not as quiet as the bookstore they were just in. There’s a short line at the meat shop, trailing to the entrance of the next store. They wait on the line, slowly moving up with time. They start off talking about school and the Phantom Thieves before moving into more interesting topics. 

“Come on, you? Anime? I never would’ve thought. What are you watchin’?” 

“Well, there’s one I started recently. It’s a little out there, but I enjoy the plot. Kakegurui, was it?”

“Really?” He laughs. “It’s good, don’t get me wrong but alotta guys are readin’ the manga because of the hot chicks.” 

“Yes, but the gambling aspect is fascinating. Watching them gamble their lives away, and many cheating in various ways while doing it, is captivating.” 

The conversations shift to other animes and mangas, most of which Makoto hadn’t heard of or bothered with. By the time they reach the front of the line, she feels like she has her free time planned out for her already, thanks to her new books and Ryuji’s recommendations. Makoto is about to order for them when the woman working the counter shakes her head. 

“Sorry kids, we’re all out.” She says in a raspy voice. 

“Aw man! We waited on the line for nothin’?” 

She shrugs, already reaching up for the metal shutters. “Try again tomorrow night.” With a loud bang, the metal hits the counter. The few people waiting behind them all complain amongst themselves. Still, it didn’t change the fact they were out of luck, with rumbling stomachs. Neither of them had considered buying anything on the way. 

“Sorry, looks like we’re unlucky today.” Makoto shrugs, unsure what to do next. “Maybe there’s another spot nearby we can buy something in?” 

“This sucks... wait! There’s this spot like a block away. It’s kinda shady but the food is good.” Ryuji guides them down a narrow alleyway, the noise from the main street fading behind them. With the sun fully down, it was hard to see in front of her. Makoto could feel her heart racing the further along they moved. 

“Um, Ryuji?” She calls to him, grabbing his hand instinctively. He jumps up slightly, started by the unexpected touch of her hand. He turns around to see her, a worried look on her face. It was hard to see the details, but with the faint light behind her, he could make out some features of her face. “Can I hold your hand until we get through here?” 

“Y-yeah, course. We’re almost there.” He’d ask her about her fear of the dark later on, when she wasn’t grabbing onto his hand for dear life. They leave out through the gap, entering a larger and brighter alleyway. There aren’t too many businesses still open, but there’s a small shop with old wooden chairs in front of the counter. He guides them over to the stand, and as he sits, Ryuji realizes he’s still holding her hand. 

“Thank you,” Makoto says softly, pulling her hand away. He was happy the lights were still dim, because he could feel his face turn pink. 

They order ramen noodles, nothing too complicated for the night. As they enjoy the meal, Ryuji glances at Makoto. She seems to be enjoying herself, the only goal he had for the night. All he wanted was a chance with her, and even with a small obstacle like the stand running out of food, it seemed to be going better already. He paid attention to her movements, the way left hand held lightly onto the bowl while the other brought food to her mouth. She kept her head low, as though she was deep in her thoughts. She pauses for a moment, and looks directly at Ryuji. 

“Do I have something on my face? You seem to be staring.” She was beautiful, and he didn’t want this to be the last date. He had to be upfront about it, before he lost his courage. 

“Would you wanna go on another date? I dunno if you enjoyed this one that much, but uh… I’m having a good time.” 

“I’d like that. However, we do have exams coming up. How about after exams, on the first day of summer?” 

“Yeah, sounds like a plan.”

Makoto looks down at her nearly empty bowl, considering the possibilities of this relationship. She was still worried about people talking about her behind her back, and while she didn’t care nearly as much as she used to, she still had a reputation to maintain. Unfortunately, it meant dating a delinquent would likely cause a stir at the school. She knew he was better than that, but others didn’t. 

“Ryuji, can we keep this a secret? I’m not sure if I’m ready to tell people about us dating.” 

Ryuji tilts his head. “You worried about the Shujin students talkin’ shit?” 

She nods. “Honestly, yes. It’s bad enough having students believe I was complicit in the Kamoshida scandal already. I’d prefer not to have more attention on me because I’m dating-”

“Someone like me, huh?” There was pain and anger in his voice. “Look Makoto, I know I ain’t shit. If you just accepted another date because ya felt bad for me, just say it.” 

“Ryuji, I’m not saying I don’t want to date you. I only want to keep it between the two of us. Things can get complicated and ruin our relationship before it’s even happened. People will judge and try to tell us we can’t be together because of who we are. So to avoid having people making these larger decisions for us, I want to stay secret…. Please?” 

It was Ryuji’s turn to look down at his bowl, but he had finished his meal long ago. He was still hurt by her words. Knowing that she cared about appearances shouldn’t have surprised her. At the same time, it would be worse for her if people knew. He hated his reputation, and he wished he could fix it, but even getting straight A’s wouldn’t stop people from talking behind his back. He couldn’t drag her into that, not unless she agreed to it. Keeping them a secret was really the only thing they could do, for now. 

“Okay, we can date in secret.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was supposed to be a one-shot, but I'm so bad at just cutting it off because I keep getting ideas. This will probably have no more than five chapters? We'll see :)


	2. Waiting Below

It’d been a little over two weeks since their first date. With exams, a failed celebration, and a new threat over their head, there wasn’t much time for them to really talk about what was next. The only thing they both agreed on was keeping their relationship status secret. It wasn’t a big change in their day to day lives. They kept acting friendly among the Phantom Thieves, and rarely interacting at school. The only noticeable difference Makoto noticed was how Ryuji no longer seemed to chat up girls. Prior to the date, she would see him attempt, but after, he barely looked at other girls. 

It’s what Makoto thought about, laying on her bed in the early evening. She didn’t really get a chance to see him in the last few weeks before the semester ended, but she noticed the change. However, she stayed the same. She kept working on her studies and student council duties. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a pebble hitting her window. Getting off her bed, she moves to the window. When she opens it, she sees Ryuji at the bottom. 

“Ryuji? What are you doing here?” Makoto questions, looking down below to see him smiling. 

“It’s the first day of summer ain’t it?” Ryuji laughs, holding out his hand, thumb up. Makoto had forgotten they agreed on the first day of summer as their next date. Neither of them had talked about what to do. Then again, it fit in the theme of their first one: no real planning. It was a change of pace for Makoto for sure, but it was nice to be a little spontaneous. 

“Did you have anything in mind?” She asks him. 

“There’s this ferris wheel I wanna check out. Akira said he took Ann there last week, said the view is awesome so…” He shrugs. “Figured I’d take ya there!” 

Makoto looks around, not seeing another soul in sight. Her sister was out for the night, working on some other case. It really benefited her to have a sister who wasn’t home half the time. She would never have approved their relationship, so she would not only be sneaking out at night, she would be with a boy her sister would never approve of. 

The idea was thrilling. 

She grins. “Give me ten minutes, I’ll be down.” She closes the window, and changes out of her sleepwear. She doesn’t take too long to make the braid in her hair, grabbing a thin sweater on her way out. Grabbing her keys from the kitchen table, she excitedly walks out the door and locks it. Turning around, she sees Ryuji standing with his hands in his pockets.   
“You look nice.” He compliments her. She looks down at her simple attire. It wasn’t much honestly, just a long white shirt and black leggings. 

“You sure about that?” She asks, and the two start the walk to the train station.

“Yeah, but you always look good so can’t complain.” 

Makoto blushes, taken aback by his compliment. On their way there, they were careful to slip into crowds, avoiding people they may have recognized. Thankfully for Makoto, she had to know the student’s faces, so anytime she saw someone that looked like them, she tugged Ryuji in another direction. Ryuji was slightly annoyed to do so, but understood her concern for it. In the stop between trains, they stopped by a convenience store. He spots sunglasses and baseball hats, buying two of each item.

“What is this for?” She questions. 

“Well, we don’t look like ourselves when we wear our masks right? Maybe if we wore sunglasses and the hats, people wouldn’t recognize us either.” He says, handing her both. The sunglasses had a metal frame, with small accents at the corners of the frames. The lenses were large and dark enough to cover her red eyes. She faces a window in the station, putting them on. It was true; if you didn’t know it was Makoto beforehand, you might’ve not thought twice about it. The plain black baseball hat was the finishing touch; she almost looked like a tourist with the combination. 

“I’m surprised how well this seems to work.” She thinks aloud, taken aback. 

“Yeah, told ya!” He dons his own sunglasses and hat, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and looking into the same window. “Now maybe we can walk around with ya being scared.” The words hurt him to say, but he knew she needed that reassurance. Maybe in the future, they could talk about being open… but for now, they needed to look unlike themselves. 

\--

The line for the ferris wheel is surprisingly short. There aren’t too many people waiting, and the ones that are, are tourists. At least that was the vibe Ryuji got looking at the few people waiting in front of them. He sees two prices listed: one for Tokyo residents, and one for tourists. When approaching the counter, he notices that they’re charged the tourist price. 

“We live in Tokyo.” Makoto says, already pulling out her wallet to show her student ID. It’s too fast, and Ryuji doesn’t even notice until she’s already paying for both of their tickets, thankfully, at the lower resident rate. 

“You stepped in quick.” He whispers to her as they’re escorted to an empty passenger car.   
“I wasn’t going to let him take advantage of us.” 

Stepping into the car, they see It’s not very big, with no more than ten seats lined along the edges of the car. They sit near each other, but not right next to each other. Neither know whether or not to sit right by each other. Moving up, there’s an awkward silence. It isn’t until they reach the top that Ryuji breaks it. 

“Damn that’s a view.” He says, looking at the Tokyo skyline in front of them. Makoto turns her head slightly to see it as well. She seems to be happy, but she was always good at giving a poker face. He couldn’t tell if she was enjoying herself or not. 

“I can see why Akira would bring Ann here, especially if they came at sunset.” She says, finally smiling. He feels relieved inside, and places both hands on his knees. 

“They had to talk about Phantom Thief stuff too I guess. Before he took her here, she still had Carmen. So whatever happened here changed her somehow.” 

Makoto laughs, “I think it’s more because of their bond. The location likely aided in that connection, but it sounds like he took her here after they started dating.” 

“Huh…” Ryuji scratches his head. “Does that mean maybe if we connect like that, will our personas change too? Akira’s still got all his personas. He doesn't even use Arsene anymore.” 

“Maybe one day we might. I think for now, we just have to see what happens.”

“Yeah…” 

He looks down at her hand resting on the empty seat between them. He looks up at her, her eyes still focused on the view outside. There’s a small sadness in her eyes, but he doesn’t know why. He makes another mental note to ask her about it later, adding it to the new short list of things he wanted to ask her about in the future. Instead, he places his hand on top of hers, intertwining his fingers with her. She doesn’t pull back, a small smile appearing on her face. 

“Did I explain to you why I wanted to hold your hand before? When we were going through the alley?” She says, finally facing him again. The small breeze coming from the gaps in the passenger car moves her hair slightly, complimenting her face. 

“Nah, I was gonna ask ‘bout it but I didn’t know if it was a big deal or not.” 

“It kind of is,” She says, looking down at her shoe. “Promise you won’t judge?” 

“Course. I mean-” Realizing what he said, he quickly back pedals. “I won’t judge ya, I mean.”

“When I was young, my sister put me to bed because my father was always out late working. One night, my sister decided I was too old for a night light and took it away. I was really scared, and for a while, I wanted to go find it. I couldn’t sleep, but when I tried to leave my room, it was locked. I didn’t know any better, so I just went back to bed and cried. It turns out that was the night my father was killed in the line of duty. She got the call, and locked my door so she could pull herself together before she came to break the news to me. He was shot in a dark alleyway while chasing some criminals. I don’t know why they told an eight year old all these details, but… it left me scared of the dark.” 

Ryuji watches her face get more and more sad the further she goes into her story. By the time she finishes, there are tears in the corners of her eyes. It didn’t seem like she was going to let them fall, but she was clearly emotional. She uses her free hand to wipe them away before they have an opportunity to slip without her wanting it too. He pulls at her hand, and she’s pulled into the gap seat between them. He doesn’t have time to really think of his actions, instead focusing on the hug he was pulling her into. She fits perfectly in his arms, and even though the angle is awkward, the sentiment is there. 

“I’m sorry about your dad, I didn’t know he was killed…” He says into Makoto’s shoulder. She doesn’t wrap her arms around him at first, too surprised by the sudden touch. Finally, she reciprocates. When they pull apart, their faces are inches apart. Makoto, realizing the position they were in, turns bright red. 

“I-uh, thanks.” She goes back to her seat, quickly scooting back. Ryuji smirks. As confident as she was, she was always so awkward around people. It was something he found cute about her. But he was still shocked that she was so open about something that personal already. 

“I don’t get it though, why tell me?” He asks. Biting her lip, she briefly looks away before focusing on him. 

“I want you to feel like you can trust me, because I trust you. I know I’m being overly cautious about us in public,” She points to the sunglasses and hat on their laps, “and it’s not too easy for me to show emotions like you do when we’re alone. But I do want you to know I want this as much as you do. It might not make too much sense, I know, but I’m putting my faith in you.” She flashes a smile. “Besides, if you were going to ask anyway, I may as well beat you to it.” 

Trust in him, something he barely had himself. Ryuji was never good at letting people in, only really doing so recently, and more so with Akira. This new group of friends had pushed his normal reserved self to its limits, but he hadn’t realized they were doing the same thing. It made sense for Makoto to tell him all this, not as a friend, but as a potential long-term lover. Maybe one day he’d return the favor, but he wasn’t super comfortable talking about his own father. For now, all he could do was accept this trust, and this affirmation that she wanted him. 

“I uh… thanks? I dunno what to say,” He awkwardly laughs, scratch the back of his neck. “Now you got me speechless.”

“Maybe you can say we’ll go on another date in a few days if our Phantom Thief duties don’t come up? There’s this film coming out tomorrow I’d like to see, but if we go during the week there’s less people.” Makoto is straightforward, and this time she’s the one to grab his hand. 

“Wait, is it that new action film-”

“Yes, it looks wonderful.”

Ryuji swoons, “You’re amazing.”

\--

Ryuji walks Makoto back to her home, stopping in front of her door. On their way back, they looked into the showings, settling on Tuesday evening. Even if they were called in Mementos, or if they figured out their next full target by then, they could still go out. 

“I’ll pay for the tickets, you got the ferris wheel so I wanna pay for the movie.” Ryuji says. He still felt bad that she paid for the ferris wheel, especially since he was the one that invited her out for it. 

“You can, but I’ll still pay for snacks.” Makoto laughs, squeezing his hand a little tighter. Despite an awkward start, she felt far more comfortable with physically touching him now. It would get easier with time, she knew that much. While holding his hand was easy now, she’s flustered as he kisses her cheek. 

“Ya know, you’re really cute when you get red like that.” He says, a wicked smile on his face. “See ya soon?” 

“See you soon,” She watches his walk away. She holds her hand up to the spot where he kissed her, feeling the butterflies moving in her stomach. Yeah, she knew this was worth the anxiety it gave her.


	3. Low Light

The next few dates they had followed the same pattern. Even though he had a phone and could easily text her that he was downstairs, Ryuji continued to throw pebbles at her window. Makoto was annoyed at first, worried about the state of her window. Overtime, it became a sign of their blooming relationship. She would expect the tapping on her window a little before 8pm. By then, she was always ready to go, no longer having to waste a single moment getting ready. 

She’d run down the stairs, always careful to either avoid her sister or go out on days Makoto knew she was working. The sneaking-by was the hardest part, since she hadn’t exactly told anyone about them dating. Even the Phantom Thieves had yet to catch on. Worried about Futaba and her palace, it became a priority for them to help her out. They weren’t 100% sure it would help with their issue, but it was the only solution they had. 

Still, that wasn’t the thing on either of their minds right now. Despite all the turmoil they’ve encountered the last few weeks with Futaba’s palace, they still wanted to focus on being teenagers. That meant running off yet again to some random spot they wouldn’t see a lot of people. 

“I wanna try somethin’ a little different,” Ryuji says, casually reaching and grabbing her hand. “There’s an arcade I go to sometimes. They close later than alotta other ones, and since it's a Wednesday night I figured it’d be almost dead if we go now.” 

“I like that.”

\--

Moving through the side streets, there were few people around. This was the furthest they could get from Shujin Academy while still remaining in Tokyo, but it felt like a whole other world. It was dark, so Makoto held onto Ryuji’s hand tightly as they traversed the streets. After a short time, they turn the corner to a brightly lite opening. The arcade was a small hole-in-the-way type of place, with little around it besides other convenience stores and small restaurants. Going inside, there were a few people around. Most attendees couldn’t have been much older than they were, but thankfully, Makoto didn’t recognize anyone.   
“When was the last time you were here?” Makoto wonders. The games didn’t appear to be brand new, some looking more worn out than others. Still, she wasn’t going to complain about the state of the equipment, especially when she didn’t have much experience in arcades outside of one visit with Akira. 

“Uh, few months ago. Pretty much ever since I started hanging out with Akira, I haven’t been here. I know it looks a little old, but the games are good. Come on, I’ll show you my favorite shooter.” Ryuji says, taking her hand and pulling over to a large machine in the corner of the arcade. There’s two black guns on both sides, with a few buttons on a console in between them. He takes out some coins and puts them into the machine. The option for two players comes up, and he grabs one of the rifles. 

“How do you play this game?” She asks, following his lead. In the metaverse, her gun was much smaller. She used two hands with it, but she could’ve used one as needed. As a result, she felt awkward holding the clunky gun. Watching her struggle, Ryuji puts his down for a moment and goes to help her. He stands close behind her, moving her hands to the parts of the gun she needed to grab onto. They had hugged and held hands before, but this felt different. Having him that close to her, in an almost sensual way, was surprisingly nice. 

“There’s gonna be zombies on screen. Just gotta shoot them. If you see a target on one, then we both gotta go for it. You ready?” He explains her ear. Meanwhile, the screen shows a fairly generic story of how the world was overtaken by zombies and how their characters were the saviors. 

“Yes, let’s play.” Makoto says, and Ryuji goes back to his rifle. They’re thrown right into it, shooting the various zombies coming at them on the screen. Makoto unintentionally starts yelling, wincing everytime any of them get too close to her character. Ryuji couldn’t help but laugh after hearing her shout. They’re able to hit nearly every zombie that comes their way, going through multiple rounds of zombies. 

Eventually, Makoto is able to stop feeling as afraid and shouting over all the zombies. Instead, her and Ryuji communicate with one another about the struggles on screen. The game had intensified, especially since they had gone through multiple rounds without dying yet. She wasn’t sure how long the game was, but based on Ryuji’s sporadic actions in the most recent one, she was sure this was the farthest he’d gotten. 

“Oh shit, it’s the big boss. I never get this far.” Ryuji says, pulling out more coins and placing them on the console. “If you die, put another coin in and come back in. We’re kickin’ ass!” 

The boss was a disgustingly large zombie that continued to throw different objects their way to get their health down. The first to go is Makoto, who reaches for the coins to get back in as soon as possible. Not long after she’s back in, Ryuji is knocked out. Before he can get the coin in, Makoto dies, ending their game. 

“Aw, I don’t think we had too much left either. I’m sorry we couldn’t win.” Makoto says sadly. Ryuji looks at the screen reset back to the title screen, a grin appearing on his face. 

“You kiddin’? I’ve never seen that guy before. Besides, we got a good reason to come back now.” Ryuji smiles, grabbing the coins from the console. He glances around a the other games, “Pick somethin’ that catches your eye.” 

Makoto wanders around, with Ryuji not too far behind her. She wasn’t sure which one was ideal for her, but they all looked somewhat interesting. She settles on a large roulette looking wheel. There were light bulbs around the edges of the circle, with lights flashing on and off in an inconsistent pattern. Based off the numbers and large red button on the console, she figured she had to aim for a high number. 

“How about this one?” Makoto says, approaching it. 

Ryuji puts a coin inside. “This one’s pretty simple. If you get a high number, you get a shit ton of tickets, which we can cash in for a prize. I don’t play alotta ticket games because the prizes are pretty shitty unless you got like ten thousand tickets.” 

“What would 500 tickets get us?” She says, pointing to the largest number on the wheel. Despite its large number, it was the smallest section.

“Probably some old candy, or a little plastic toy. Maybe one of those super bouncy balls, the ones that reach all the way to your head.” None of those sounded really appealing to Makoto, but she was interested in seeing if she could hit the 500. Pulling on the side level, the bulbs stop flashing. Instead, a single bulb is lit up at a time. Circling around the edge, Makoto watches intently. She slams down on the circle, barely missing the 500. 20 tickets come out of the machine instead. 

“Well, I suppose it’s better than the 5 that’s on there.” Makoto reaches down to get tickets. When she comes back up, she sees Ryuji putting in another coin. 

“I wanna give it a shot, it’s been awhile since I’ve played this.” He does the same thing as Makoto. Actually, the exact same thing. Also trying to go for the 500, he comes off short by hitting the other 20 tickets on the opposite side. Makoto laughs as Ryuji groans. 

“I get a feeling we’ll waste all your coins if we stay here.” She giggles, reaching for the coins he placed on the console. Still, she couldn’t help but want to hit that 500. As dumb as it was, it was a small goal she wanted accomplished. “Okay maybe one more.”

They spend the next twenty minutes trying to hit the 500. Everytime, they come close to it, hitting 20. Only once do they not get 20 tickets, instead hitting the 50 when Ryuji got a little too anxious and hit it far too early. As Ryuji puts in the last coin he brought to try again, Makoto starts to count the tickets. Doing the math, they had almost 300 tickets alone. Looking up, she smiles. Ryuji is intensely focused on the task at hand. Makoto wished she could get Ryuji to care that much about school once they returned in September, but that was a problem for another day. 

“Ah shit!” Ryuji cheers as the machine plays a joyful song. Finally, he hit the 500. He immediately goes to hug Makoto, causing her to drop the tickets. He spins her around, the two laughing as they do it. The sound of the tickets spewing out of the machine was nothing compared to the combined sound of their laughter. 

When he places her down, they look at each other, and the laughter dies down. Even in a dimly lit, and honestly kinda dingy, arcade, he thought she was the beautiful person he’d ever seen. Their faces were inches apart, their eyes both wide from the weird feelings they seemed to have. They both knew they liked each other, but this was little different than just that. Makoto is the first to break the tension when the machine finally silences, and all their tickets are out. 

“L-let’s go cash in our tickets.” She says, pulling away. Ryuji scratches the back of his neck, mentally kicking himself for not taking the chance and kissing her. It’d been a little over a month since they’d started dating, but because neither of them knew what they were doing, neither really reached out for that first kiss. 

“You got’em all?” He asks, looking at the massive pile of tickets in her hands. She nods, and he guides her over to the ticket stand. They cash in their pile for a bouncy ball, two plastic rings, and a few stickers. Ryuji wastes no time as they leave, already pulling a sticker off the paper and placing it on her face. 

“Really?” She says, wanting to take it off. She decides against it, seeing the happy look on his face. She wasn’t sure what time it was, but she didn’t care too much. Spending time with him was nice after all, and since they didn’t really talk during the day, the night was all they had. “Come on, I’ll get us some drinks. I think I saw a vending machine not too far from here.”

Grabbing his hand again, she finds a row of vending machines with different options. They settle on two lychee sodas from a beat up pink vending machine. Ryuji watches her intently, still regretting his decision to hold off on kissing her. Handing him a can and sitting next to him on the nearby bench, he takes a quick sip out of it. He keeps his eyes on her and her smile. As stupid as the sticker was on her face, it was still cute seeing her have the little gray cat on her face. When she realizes he’s starting at her, she smirks and grabs the stickers out of his hands. 

“Revenge I guess?” He says, as she places a small brown bear on his cheek. 

“It’s only fair,” She kisses the space next to the bear, and quickly chugs down her drink. Ryuji follows suit, also finishing his drink pretty quickly. She takes the can from him, walking over to the nearby trash can. Thinking back to the rings in his pocket, he pulls them both out. One was blue with a heart on it, and the other was yellow with a lightning bolt. When she comes back, he holds out the yellow ring. 

“I dunno how to do this without it sounding like I’m askin’ ya to marry me, but we did get two rings. So uh, you can take this one.” He says somewhat embarrassed. She smiles, sliding the plastic ring on her finger. He didn’t really know which finger it was that people used for when they got married, but he slipped it on the middle one. When it didn’t fit all the way down, he moved it on the one next to it. 

“Looks like we are married now.” Makoto holds up her hand, the ring on the same finger. 

“Oh! Uh… I-I..uh-” He stutters. He was grateful for the low light protecting his rapidly warming face. 

Makoto doesn’t make fun of him, or embarrasses him any further. She grabs his hand, their fingers intertwining, and the other finds a place on his cheek. They both lean in, finally kissing each other for the first time. It’s sweet and soft, everything Ryuji would’ve expected from kissing her. As they continue, Ryuji’s other hand instinctively goes for her waist, lightly touching her side. When they pull apart, he awkwardly smiles at her. 

“Um…” He’s still speechless, unsure of what to say after all that. “I think this is my favorite date now.”

“I think I agree with you.” Makoto grins, squeezing his hand for a moment. Everything felt… perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I think I finally figured this out! I got three more chapters for this planned so we're halfway through :)


	4. I Don't Wanna Keep Secrets

Makoto worked quietly in the student council office. Organizing the paperwork scattered around the office, she diligently works to ensure the upcoming semester would go smoothly. Without realizing it, her summer is nearly over. Futaba’s palace had crumbled, with a new potential member coming out of it. However, her slumber left Makoto nervous. How was she supposed to stay calm when their only hope of defeating Medjed was out of commission? 

So the best way for her to remain calm was doing something she did have full control over: her position on the student council. 

“Ah, Niijima. I was hoping I would see you here,” Kawakami says, peering in through the open door. 

“Oh!” Makoto jumps slights, caught off guard by her presence. “I wasn’t expecting anyone to be here.” 

“I came in to fix up my classroom. Also at the request of the principal, he asked me to speak with you,” Kawakami sighs, before mumbling under her breath. “Why am I always getting sent to do busy work?” 

“Me? What’s going on?” Makoto was shocked. The last time she really talked to the principal was when she decided to go full force into the Phantom Thieves. She admired their justice, and selling them out wouldn’t have helped at all. To say the least, they weren't on good terms. Then again, it made sense if he wasn’t going to speak to her himself. 

“Look,” She enters the room, only hovering over the doorway. “While the principal isn’t exactly happy with you, he says it's in your best interest to stop seeing Sakamoto.”

Makoto gasps, “I’m sorry?” She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Even then, how would he know about it? They were always so careful when they went out, avoiding overly crowded places and going out later in the day. Unless he was there, then it wouldn’t be possible for him to know. Unless… someone told him? Based on Kawakami’s place, Makoto already had her suspicions. But taking it out on her wouldn’t help the situation. 

“I don’t know how he heard, but I agree with him. It wouldn’t help for the student council president to be seen dating a troublemaker like him.” She avoided looking Makoto directly in the eyes, something she was frustrated with. 

“I didn’t realize it mattered what I did in my free time,” Makoto rebutted, holding her ground. If the same thing happened a few months ago, she would have cowered in fear. But she didn’t want to not fight for this, not after dating Ryuji all summer. However, there was still an annoying buzzing in her head telling her to stand down, listen to the adults. 

“I’m just the messenger. The principal doesn’t like the idea, and I can see where he’s coming from.” 

“Can you leave please?” Makoto abruptly asks before she can get a hold of herself. Kawakami sighs, walking out of the room and back down the hall. Of course Makoto would find herself in some kind of trouble with this. It was clear the principal was after her, and clearly whoever gave her up seemed to disagree with the idea as well. Whether or not it was Kawakami herself didn’t matter. What did matter is that her secret would likely be exposed, out there for everyone to know. The relationship couldn’t be her little secret anymore, especially with how much gossip roamed in these halls. 

But if she was going to just accept it, she needed to talk to him. 

\--

“Hey Makoto,” Ryuji grins, “You wanted to see my face?” 

Makoto had texted him, giving him directions on how to sneak inside the building. Granted, she assumed he might not need it, but texted it anyway. After all, it was easier than texting him the problems upfront. This was something that should be talked about, face to face. Although she was barely keen to talk about it at all. 

“Hey,” She forces out a smile, but they both know it’s not real. He notices, a look of concern replacing the joy on his face. 

“What’s going on? You okay?” He asked seriously. 

“I’m fine.” She lies again, but it’s a worse attempt than her previous smile. Ryuji closes the door behind him, and goes up to hug her from behind. With his arms wrapped around her waist, she feels calmer already. She didn’t want to lose him because of some stupid standards seen by the school. But she could barely deal with everything that was said before, how would she deal with being seen with him. 

“You wanna talk about it?” He whispers in her ear. It sends chills down her spine, and she knows she can’t avoid the conversation, not with him right here. If she didn’t text him, it would have been easy to avoid the problem, at least for a few more days. But with him here, she had to face it. 

“Sure.” Makoto pulls away, walking over to the other side of the table. He sits in the empty chair across from her. She sighs, putting her face in her hands. She feels his hands go to her elbows, gently caressing her. It takes a minute, but she eventually pulls her face out of it. “Um…”

“Wait, are you breaking up with me?” Ryuji panics. Makoto matches his own panic, knowing that was the exact opposite. 

“No!” She’s quick to respond. “Not at all, I love being you with you. And I’ve had so much fun this summer.” While he does look relieved, she knows his concern wasn’t going away since he still didn’t know the issue. 

“So what is it?” 

“Kawakami passed by today. Somehow, the principal found out about us, and asked her to talk to me about ending things.” 

“What? How did they know?” He questions, before the similar panic appears on his face. His voice softens, sounding almost childlike, “So does that mean…” He trails off, not wanting to say it. Makoto knows full well what he intends to say. 

“I don’t want that. It’s not fair.” She answers him. “Truthfully, it scares me. I was thinking if the same thing happened earlier, I would’ve ended our relationship.” 

“So what now?” He sounds defensive, almost sad. She knew she had to pick her words more carefully than just saying things are different. 

“Now, I don’t care what they say anymore...I think we should start telling people. Start slow and build our way up so that when school does start, we have our friend’s supporting us. I don’t know what to expect from the faculty. They could completely ignore us or continue to persuade us otherwise. Either way,” She confidently grabs his hands, the first time she feels like she can do it. “I’m not ending things, and I’m sorry being so ominous at first.” 

Makoto felt better already, just from getting the words out there. Based on his smile, she knew he likely felt the same way. She wasn’t sure why she was doubting it in the first place. While she knew others wouldn’t be receptive, she knew her friends would be. She just had to confide in herself, and in Ryuji of course. 

“Yeah, ya know I got your back!” He laughs. “Sorry for doubtin’ ya for a second. It’s just, we got a good thing going on right now. I also don’t want you to be ashamed of me or anything either.” It was clear their relationship meant as much to him as it did to her. She was sure that their initial conversation at the beginning of the summer had led to this way of thinking, but the more public they got, the more she knew he would gain confidence. Despite his tough exterior, Ryuji had a real soft side she'd learn to appreciate it. It didn’t come out fully all the time, but she saw it whenever they kissed, or the rare times she’d catch him staring at her. 

“I don’t either,” Makoto smiles. “Although that does make me question who we should tell first.” 

“Akira’s my best friend, I gotta tell him.” 

“That’s a good start. Honestly, I’m surprised you haven’t yet.” She giggles. Ryuji playfully pouts his lips. 

“Hey! You said secret, so it’s a secret.” He holds his hands up defensively. “We’re going to Mementos later today right? We can stay behind and tell him then.”

“Yeah, that works perfectly.”

\--

After finishing a few missions that had piled up while handling Futaba’s palace, the team was headed back up to the surface. It wasn’t the longest drive, but it was long enough for Panther and Fox to doze off in the back seat. Fox had his head against the window, his sketchbook on the floor from his grip loosening as he fell asleep. Panther’s head was on the middle seat, her legs awkwardly still in a sitting position. Queen noted all this, seeing it all from the rearview mirror. 

She was sitting in the front seat next to Joker, with Skull half asleep in the middle row as well. She made sure to turn slightly to face him. Giving a knowing look, he perks up and clears his throat. This was a good time to tell him, especially with the two of them asleep and Mona unable to hear much in his car form. Joker looks at Skull from the mirror. 

“What’s up?” He asks. Skull looks over at Queen one last time, making sure it was okay to do so. She gives a slight nod. 

“So uh, Makoto and I are dating.” Skull says quietly. 

“Huh.” Joker furrows his eyebrows. “How long?” 

“A couple of months, essentially all summer.” Queen responds. Joker maintains a stern face, making her nervous. However, he chuckles quietly and smirks. 

“That explains why you started saying no to hanging out sometimes. I knew something was different about you but I figured you’d tell me sooner or later.” 

Skull lets out a breath he had been holding in since he finished his sentence. “Sorry, yeah I was going out with her.”

“Oh no don’t be sorry,” He waves him off, putting his hand back on the wheel when he’s done. Queen reaches for her water bottle, taking a sip now that she felt calm enough to do so. “I’m happy for you two, but I’m gonna go ahead and call dibs on best man now.” 

She chokes on the water, and Skull’s eyes widen. 

“Dude! I- uh… Um-” Skull loudly stammers through. He puts his mask back on, crossing his arms and leaning back into his seat. He hoped maybe it would eat him, but he knew he wouldn’t be so lucky. He glances over at Queen, who seems to have a similar response. She doesn’t put on her mask though, which makes it clear that she’s profusely blushing. 

“Relax, I’m just messing with you.” He laughs, “Why tell me now that you two are dating?” 

Queen lets her face turn back to her normal color before responding. “I was working on some student council paperwork earlier today and Kawakami came by to tell me the principal had caught wind. He didn’t seem to approve of it, but if the staff already knows, then we figured we may as well start telling people. We decided to start with you.” 

“Well, looks like you saved some time, because Ryuji’s stuttering woke up the two in the back.” 

Skull’s head shoots back. Panther’s eyes are sparkling from excitement, while Fox has a neutral but content look on his face. Another reason for him to put his mask back on and sink further into the leather seats. Although before he could, Panther grabs his shoulders. 

“AH YOU GOT A GIRL!” Panther excitedly shakes him back and forth. “I’m so happy for you!” 

“I’m confused on how you did so. I never would have expected you to be Makoto’s type.” Fox admits, picking his sketchbook off the ground. 

“Dude!” Skull says defensively, and pulls away from Panther’s grip. 

“Well, so much for one at a time.” Queen sighs, pressing on the bridge of her nose and closing her eyes. 

“You!” Panther’s right hand grips onto the seat while her left points at Queen. Her body shifts as far forward as it can with the seatbelt on. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I can keep a secret!” 

Without turning back to face her, Queen knows she’s talking about her. She turns her head over to see her finger directly pointing at her. “I can have my secrets. Same goes for Ryuji.”

“But Ryuji is horrible at keeping secrets. I’m amazed he lasted this long.” Fox laughs. 

“Alright, alright. Settle down, everyone. We’ve teased them enough. We can keep annoying them about it once Futaba hopefully joins the team.” Joker defuses the situation. There is a murmuring of agreeing before the car gets quiet again. It’s quiet for a minute, maybe two. 

“So when’s the wedding?” Panther asks. 

“COME ON!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're back! :D Sorry for the wait. But my goal is to finish this before the end of the August (end of summer lol)


	5. Ain't That The Worst Thing You Ever Heard?

Ryuji could admit he wasn’t expecting the whole team to find out at once. While it made things way easier for him to get through the awkwardness, they were obviously very accepting of them. What made things tricker now was the whole ‘public’ part. It wasn’t hard when they were in their social group. Ryuji would just sit next to Makoto during Phantom Thieves meetings or maybe sneak a kiss on the cheek when the others weren’t looking, with Ann notoriously seeming to catch him every time he tried, which eventually led to them giving up on secrecy. The recent influx in meetings while trying to get Futaba to talk to them certainly made it easy for the pair to adjust. 

So after Futaba got used to the group, the light shifted back to the pair.

At the group's instance (but mostly Ann’s), they were to go out on a date. In broad daylight. Makoto was doing her best not to panic about it, but she still had her fears about being talked about just because of who she wanted to spend her time with. She knew it shouldn’t be difficult. After all, they were just going to the diner in Shibuya. They’d been there before with their friends and never had anyone say anything (that she knew of). 

However, she still felt the nerves inside her bubble up when Ryuji showed up at her house with a small bouquet of white flowers. 

“Are these for me?” Makoto immediately questions, looking at Ryuji’s nervous face. 

“Y-yeah.” He feels the heat rise to his face, “I uh, thought it’d be nice? Ya know, since it’s like our first real date.” 

Right, Makoto knew that. However, that wasn’t the only reason she was nervous. Ryuji initially thought it was only the nerves of the day getting to her, until he saw the older Niijima sister appear behind Makoto’s shoulder. Well, any confidence Ryuji still had left in him disappeared as he failed to consider the possibility of her being home. How was he supposed to know she’d be here? She’s never around whenever they go out at night, why now?

“So this is Ryuji Sakamoto? The boy you told me about?” Niijima questions, and it’s impossible for him to gauge if she’s truly okay with him or not. He simply waves, a goofy smile on his face. 

“Yes, I promise he’s a good influence despite the dyed hair.” Makoto responds. 

“Hey! - wait you think I’m a good influence?” Ryuji responds, taken aback by the back hand compliment. Niijima sighs, but pats Makoto on the shoulder. 

“You’re old enough to make your own decisions.” She turns her attention to Ryuji. “However if you do ever break Makoto’s heart -” 

“Sis! We talked about this!” 

“Right, I’m sorry.” Niijima sighs, “As long as you respect my sister and stay on the right side of the law, we won’t have any problems.” 

“Y-yes ma’am!” Ryuji unintentionally salutes, causing the flowers to fall to the ground. Makoto and Ryuji reach down to pick it up at the same time, bumping heads. 

“Seems like a match made in heaven.” Niijima smiles. “I’ll leave you to it.” 

Makoto and Ryuji both stand up, sheepish from the slight bump. They wave goodbye and head onto their date. They didn’t have much planned, but Makoto had her suspicions when Ryuji continuously checked his phone. 

“Everything okay?” She finally asks when he starts texting again. He jumps, quickly finishing the message before putting his phone away. She knew something was up, but she couldn’t really pinpoint what it was. Although looking at the way he seemed to nervously grip his phone, it had to be something big. 

“Yeah! Why wouldn’t it be? Oh look it's our stop!” The train slows down. Ryuji grabs her hand, pulling her off the train. Although, looking around at the station, it was nowhere near as crowded as the usual Shibuya station. It was a smaller one, and she wasn’t really sure where she was. That’s when she realizes, as he continues pulling her through a random smaller neighborhood, that their date was totally changing. 

They end up in a park, a few blocks away from the station. Ryuji keeps poking his head up, looking around at different areas. Makoto could see random people around her, some hiding under the shady trees while others were taking full advantage of the warm late-summer sun beating down on them. Suddenly he stops in his tracks, in a nice cooler area filled with tall green trees. He turns himself around to face her, letting go of her hand. 

“Uh, can I close your eyes?” He lifts up his hands. She smirks, but nods. “Cool! I promise ya won’t trip.” 

Makoto feels his hands against her eyes, which she instinctively closes. Ryuji nearly steps on her feet a few times, but somehow he avoids the back of her ankles and them tumbling down a hill. She can hear the sound of soft whispers, but she can’t discern what any of them are saying. It gets a little louder, as if they’re approaching the voices. It isn’t until she hears a familiar yelp out of nowhere that it suddenly occurs to her what’s going on. 

“Alright guys, what’s going on?” Makoto smiles, knowing her friends were up to something again. There’s another flurry of loud whispers. 

“Oh no they’re here!”  
“Damn it! I knew she was gonna figure it out.”  
“Well, Futaba did make a noise when Yusuke stepped on her foot.”  
“You speak as though I did it on purpose.”  
“I don’t care, it HURT Inari!” 

“Aight, so much for surprises.” Ryuji chuckles, pulling back his hands. There was a picnic set up beneath several trees, keeping them perfectly in the shade. Ann threw her hands out, as if showing off their set up, with Morgana smiling at her feet. Akira mimics her motion, but is less grandiose than her. Behind them, Yusuke and Futaba are quietly bickering amongst themselves. 

“Is this for us? What about going out and being around crowds?” Makoto asks. After all, Ann was one of the main people to push them to go out in public. 

“Yeah well, after talking with Ryuji, I figured you just liked being a little more private with stuff - which I totally get!” Ann explains. “So he helped me plan all this out, so you can still be out for your date, but not in front of everyone.”

Ryuji wraps his arm around her waist, pulling her to his side. “Yeah, Ann honestly put the whole thing together. I just kinda gave the idea.”

Yusuke and Morgana move more forward from behind the other two, with Yusuke starting to gesture to different areas. “I carefully organized everything to be the most pleasing to the eye. If you look over here…”

He continues to drone on, which makes Makoto smile. She leans over to whisper in his ear, “This is really sweet, Ryuji. Thank you.” 

He lightly kisses the side of her head. “Anythin’ for you.” He whispers back. When Yusuke finishes, or more so when Futaba finally gets him to stop talking, the rest of the team leaves the pair alone. 

They both sit on the blue blanket, a small picnic basket set up for them. Inside were a few lunch items, nothing overly fancy. It was clear that one of the team had stopped by some local restaurant to pick everything up, but Makoto didn’t care. The gesture was well intended, and she was happy just being with him. There were occasional people passing by them, but it wasn’t anything Makoto couldn’t handle. 

After sometime eating and enjoying their meal, Ryuji lays down on the blanket, his hands behind his head. Makoto goes to lie down next to him, feeling happier than she had what was a few short weeks ago. 

“Ya think your sister is gonna like me?” Ryuji asks, thinking about how scary she was at first. Sure, he could probably get her to warm up to him over time, but if it was gonna be tough right now, he needed to mentally prepare. Truthfully, it had him worried. 

Some of that fear goes away when she laughs. “My sister is just like that. If we keep going out, I think she’ll eventually ask if you want to join us for dinner.” 

“Uhh…” Ryuji stammers off. “Is that the kinda thing where I should bring a suit?” 

“No, but don’t wear one of your t-shirts, the ones with the weird statements.”

He playful pokes at her sides, making her squeal slightly and sit back up. “Heh, sorry not sorry.” 

She gives a mischievous grin, before going straight for his stomach and tickling him. He bursts into laughter, moving to the side over and over as Makoto continues. He eventually sits back up, grabbing her by the waist to get her to stop, low demands to stop coming from his mouth

“Alright alright, I’ll stop,” She says, her own laughter trailing off. Their foreheads instinctively press against each other, Ryuji feeling his breath caught in his throat. Peering up, he looks into her red eyes. There was a lot he wanted to say. He could spend all day complimenting her, reminding her how great she was. Instead, it comes out simple. 

“I love you.” He lets out the breath, feeling a new pause in his body as he waits for a reaction. His eyes widening from the realization that the words just fell out of him. Another moment of fear, this one with way more weight than the last one. His heart beats over and over again, feeling like it’s about to jump out when she opens her mouth. 

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh, end of summer right? Haha...  
> Yeahhh this story got a little left behind, I think because it wasn't prewritten. But it's alive, and the epilogue, while not written, is thought out. 
> 
> But this was all written today because I had a bad day, a lot of people I know did too, so what better outlet than to write tooth rotting fluff? Hopefully, if you're reading this and you've had a bad day, this makes you feel a little better.


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